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Press chief David Montgomery faces revolt

The newspaper veteran David Montgomery, chief executive of Mecom, is facing a shareholder rebellion that could lead to him being removed from his European publishing empire.

Some of Mecom's big investors told the group's non-executive directors before Christmas that naming a successor to Montgomery, who once ran the Mirror Group, is the only way to put an end to its poor stock-market performance. The fresh revolt comes a year after Montgomery clung to power when an attempt by the board to oust him failed. Instead, six directors walked out.

Mecom owns 300 newspapers. It made a £944m loss last year and had to sell assets and raise cash in a £140m rights issue. A trading statement 10 days ago sent Mecom shares higher when it reported that the advertising decline had slowed. But the good news is thought to have earned Montgomery only a stay of execution.